New York City

November 19, 2015

Thursday evening after a long day at the office, my sister and I made our way to New York City. We departed from Ottawa approximately around 4pm (the worst time possible - RUSH HOUR), hit Montreal around 6:30pm (also not a great time), and then arrived in New York City around 2am Friday morning (New York City never sleeps, therefore, there is never a good time). Despite crazy traffic though, we very much enjoyed our drive, chatting, singing (perhaps louder than necessary) and many laughs shared.  

November 20, 2015

When we arrive Friday morning, we hit the sack quickly, pretty exhausted from our drive. We stayed with my friend's parents, and let me tell you, although I had never met them personally, I've never slept so sound in a strangers home! When we woke up, we were introduced to Frankie! An Italian man with a New York accent (sounds just like Rocky), has a beautiful sense of humor, a heart of gold and the man can cook. During our entire trip he made sure to keep us fed, entertained and with a smile upon our faces. 

Our first day of exploring would be very limited, we were tired, but I was also focusing on my competition which would take place Saturday morning.

November 21, 2015

I woke nice and early competition morning, prepared for my day ahead and began playing scenarios in my mind while the others got ready. I looked up some videos on my opponent to get some ideas since I was riding this one solo (my teammates and coach unfortunately could not come). Beatrice kindly offered to come with us to ensure we did not get lost, as the house was about 1.5 hours from the venue where I was competing. 

We arrived in Harlem, New York with much time to spare, which allowed me to get comfortable with my surrounding. The venue was beautiful, but man was it hot and muggy in there. It wasn't a good day for me competition wise, some bad calls were made, my opponents strategy was questionable, but at the end of the day... never leave it up to the judges to decide! I've had a great competition season and although this competition was quickly over for me, it was still a wonderful experience, and after all I was in New York.

We returned home, Frankie had prepared us a fantastic seafood dinner, and slowly we started to get sleepy. It was not long before we found ourselves once again in bed.   

November 22, 2015

We began our journey a little later than anticipated but we hit New York City with much enthusiasm. Beatrice came with us, and boy was I ever happy she did. New York City isn't complicated, but it's so large it takes some time to get to know your surrounding, how they work and where the heck you are.

Walking through the city passing so many familiar places which I had before only seen in movies, was a very cool experience. Scenes from movies such as King Kong, Planet of the Apes, Godzilla, Ghostbusters, Homealone, Spiderman and so many more were all racing through my mind.    

New York City is definitely one of those places that has a lot of character. Everything from the flashing billboards, to the insanely large M&M store, to the yellow taxi's the flood the city streets, contributes to what make New York City so fascinating. I am not usually one who enjoys visiting large cities, for they are nothing but a sea of buildings, composed of over populated areas, but New York City was interesting, engaging and actually a lot of fun. It was exactly what I had expected, and was nothing short of wonderful. 

    

 

We made our way to the 9/11 memorial, and this was truly something beautiful to see. To stand in a spot that shook not only the nation but they entire  world evoked a certain sentiment that I cannot explain. Around the fountain glow the names of all those who lost their lives that day, and again the emotion  it evoked made chills run down my spine. There are still many of the remains from 9/11 that have been placed in a museum and some areas that are still under construction. A cute but particular church that stood still during 9/11 stands next to the museum and is also something very unique too see.

Below is a mural we found as we continued through the region, it was dedicated to all fireman who lost their lives that day, again, this photo does not do it justice. The entire area surrounding the memorial is the financial sector. The city goes from bright flashy billboards to a more traditional serious tone down-town Ottawa feel. 

We marched our way back to the bright lights and what is the first thing we see? 

Illuminated, red, massive Christmas ornaments decorating the corner, trees covered in a cluster of bright white lights, a large banner that screams Merry Christmas surrounded by angels playing trumpets... It was the Canadian Constitute. It looks much more decorative than the rest of the city streets in regards to Christmas and I must say... In Canada they are all about being politically correct by saying Happy Holidays, but outside of our country we most definitely scream "Merry Christmas" and we aren't afraid too either. I found it somewhat comical but enjoyed the sight.   

 

 

We continued our walk and made our way to a beautiful church. The amount of people inside was amazing. We took some nice photos, took in the atmosphere, but also used this opportunity to warm up :) 

 Police in America and maybe just Police in general, often get presented to the world as rude, power tripping monsters who are corrupt. In New York City every corner you turn you see a team of Police officers. Perhaps they are used to tourist, but they are super friendly, helpful and well... drop dead gorgeous (as if the uniform wasn't enough haha)! The one officer saw me smiling from a mile away, so he offered to take a group picture with me :) 

We finished off our day with a beautiful dinner in the heart of Little Italy. I personally was a little nervous, as last time I had an Italian dinner in Italy, Rome... I ended up in the hospital and almost died. So I stuck to some calamari! Once we finished dinner we headed to Beatrices favorite desert place... Ferrara's!

 I personally am not a huge desert fan, but if you are this is definitely somewhere you want to visit. They have everything you can possibly think of in an array of different flavors. Make sure if you get something from here though, that you stay and eat at the restaurant as it really does add to the experience. Prepare yourself though... It's a popular place because it's good, so the lines are LONG!

We walked about 31K in total, so fair enough to say that once we were stuffed we made our way home and the only thing we wanted by this point was a comfy bed to enter a wonderful slumber! 

November 22, 2015

We started off our day with a wonderful breakfast... lots and lots of BACON! Once full we made our way to the train station to once again hit the city! I had my first Krispy Kreme doughnut and I believe I have found true love ladies and gentleman! I don't think I will ever be able to eat a Tim Horton's doughnut again after tasting those. While waiting in the train station we also got to witness a young man get down on one knee Broadway style! He proposed to her by singing a Disney song in front of the entire train station (he had an amazing voice). It was absolutely beautiful and as you can imagine, she said yes :)

 The minute we came up from the subway stereotypical  New York City things started happening. This one photo in particular reminded me of the homeless man in Homealone who would stay in the park and feed the pigeons. It however, also made me think of the classic Disney movie Sleeping Beauty. He sang to the animals and they followed him down the road. Birds, swirls, and a few others embraces him. Pretty cool to see!  

 

The harbor which surrounds the city is pretty spectacular and filled with so many old looking ships you would see back in the day. They had giant pillars which outlined the harbor walls while the city sat in the background.

This ladies and gentleman is a timbit of advice I am so happy I had. New York City sells cruises that take you close to the status of liberty so that you may get pictures. However, there is a local Ferry which passes every 15-30 mins (depending on the day) and it is FREE. You get equally as close if not closer. For those of you traveling though for photography make sure you take a Ferry with an open roof... some of the boat allow you to go outside, one boat in particular has no openings and therefore, you must take photos through a window!

Below are some photos I managed to capture while on the Ferry - Enjoy!

The subway system is exactly like it is seen in the movies, filthy, overcrowded and somewhat confusing if you are a tourist. However, when it comes to New York City do yourselves all a favor and take the Train and Subway. You'll get there much faster, it will save you money and you won't have to drive in crazy New York traffic. 

The city street is also abundant of exceptional artist selling painting, caricatures, drawing or photographs. Many little street merchants also flood the streets with creative souvenir options. 

We stood on the Brooklyn bridge in the freezing cold (I bough mitts and a scarf) but the site was absolutely worth it. We traveled across numerous areas which had spectacular photo opportunities and jaw-dropping city-scapes.

We took hundreds of photos and then made our way back to the house early to enjoy one last dinner with Frankie, and the family!

November 23, 2015

In the am we woke and immediately prepared our things to leave. Frankie and Beatrice packed us with so much food, you'd swear we were going on a 1 month road trip! We were sad to say good-bye to the family, although our stay was short and our acquaintance has only occurred a few days ago, they already felt like family. Although I was sad, I was somewhat eager to return home to my calm city of Ottawa with a reason sized population and lowered activity and commotion. I am returning home once again with my mind filled with beautiful memories and lovely sights! I've extended my family/connections into the U.S.A. and my view of the world has been expanded a little wider.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the story and photos!

- San    

Chicken/Beef Cabbage Stew

For a while now my friends have been trying to convince me to post all my yummy recipes, however, I simply never had the time. Now they are not only demanding yummy recipes, but yummy recipes that are healthy and that can help them shed a little weight. 

As many may know, I am a martial arts practitioners but I also heavily compete, and making weight for these competitions is one of the hardest things to accomplish; mentally and physically. This recipe I am about to share is what kept me sane during my last cut from 158.8lbs to 134.5lbs.

Let the following ingredients simmer for 3-5mins: 

- 1 cup of water

- 1 teaspoon of Lemon Juice

- 1 spoon of minced Garlic

- 1 teaspoon of Olive Oil

- Add a fair amount of Parsley and Basil

Add the following ingredients and cook for 15mins: 

- Half a Cabbage

- 3 or 4 large Carrots

- Half of a Red Onion (sliced)

Add the following ingredient and cook for approximately 15mins:

- Chicken or Beef  (cut into chunks)

 If you are reading this post for healthy food ideas in hopes to shed a few pounds, note that chicken is a leaner meat than Beef and that portion size is an important factor too! Hope you enjoy the first of many posts to come.  

Milan, Italy

April 18, 2015

We left Tuscany, Italy this morning with 1050kms ahead of us before arriving back in France. We stopped in some beautiful little villages on the way, however, their beauty was about the only enjoyable part. 

The port was absolutely stunning, but expensive! It cost us €11.00 for 1 hour of parking, and €44.00 for a lasagna (which was only two noodles) and a small piece of chicken. I really liked a specific scarf, when I asked how much it costs the answer was... €550. Fair to say we didn't stay very long. 

We enjoyed relaxing by the ocean with a nice mist and then made our way to Milan, Italy! There were two main reasons for traveling to Milan: shopping and the massive basilica! 

The photo does not do this basilica justice, for its beauty and mass are truly unique! There was a lot of people in Milan, but this was probably the first Italian city we hit that was pleasant and more or less relaxed. 

The city centre was massive and there was an amazing selection of stores from super expensive to average prices. Italy is definitely great for clothing and style and was a nice experience that slimmed the wallet haha. We enjoyed our time in Milan, however, on our way back to the car, which was parked about 25 minutes away, we were caught in a horrible storm. At first we had hail and then an intense downpour. When we got to the car we were so soaked I had to remove my shoes to empty them. I actually quite enjoy the rain and being caught in it was a nice experience... definitely refreshing.  

We were so eager to finally be heading back to France and permanently leaving Italy. The mountains were a sight for sore eyes when we finally reached them again! From this trip I definitely learned I am more of a country girl than a city girl. When i'm out in the woods and mountains I feel so at peace and tranquil. 

The journey across Europe may be completed, but there is still much to do on our itinerary in France and its surrounding areas. We enjoyed a gorgeous sunset for our return home, and we're welcomed with open arms when arriving.

Stay tuned for more awesomeness in the coming days! Let's hope the good weather follows me back home to Canada!

- San

Rome, Italy - Part II

April 17, 2015

I woke up this morning still feeling quite under the weather, but I was determined not to let last night's traumatizing experience keep me down. Most of the swelling went away, but it is still visible that I am more swollen than usually. My lips look like I have a bad case of chapped lips and many of the boiling rashes remained and now look like bad mat burns. I've got some bruising on my behind from the needle and my body in general is tender. However, I'm grateful to be alive and breathing this morning, and that's all that truly matters. 

Determined to make the most of our time in Rome we hit the Vatican first thing in the morning.

I'm really happy we booked tickets through our hotel, because the waiting line to buy tickets was insane, and the line to get in even worse! In the photo above is the line to get tickets, the line goes around the entire Vatican and then into the streets. The Vatican Museum sees approximately 25,000 people every day (that's insane)!

Beautiful historical statues stand along the walls of the Vatican Museum interior, all with a tale to be told. There are also many statues of She-wolfs as they were a grand protector in Ancient Rome and are a big part of Roman legacies.   

More statues can be found in many of the great gardens and resting places found throughout the Vatican. Once again, if Roman history interest you, there are so many stories to be read and the Vatican is definitely for you. 

This clear hallway is the only clear shot within the Vatican that I was able to get without people, and thats simply because this area is gated off for tourist (I took the photo in-between bars).

The Vatican is phenomenal for breathtaking architecture and beauty everywhere you turn. Looking at these pieces of history and art makes me wonder how they did so in ancient times without the technology we have today. In modern society we have advanced technology and never do we see beauties such as these, nor do any of the monuments or building compare in mass. 

The Vatican was a nice experience, but it is one I would never do again. We are herded through the museum like sheep and the design does not allow you to exit before going through the entire museum which is absolutely massive! Picture yourself being herded through Ikea with the amount of people you see on Canada Day and the experience is pretty accurate. There are times that it was so crowded I could not even access my water bottle from my side pocket. Pictures were allowed but for the most part it was so crowded, so many people shoving that it was impossible to take a second to click let alone see the beauty it had to offer.  

I've never been so happy to run down a large set of stairs like I was to get the heck out of the Vatican! I wanted nothing more than to run outside and breath in the polluted air of Rome! We had lunch (I had plain rice as I am now terrified to eat), and we toured some surrounding site. After about 2 hours we had taken in all we could of Rome and decided it was time to hit the road! 

On our way to Tuscany, Italy, where we decided to spend the night, we toured the city. This tour of Florence did not last very long... Rome, and Italy in general does not have very pleasant people, the majority of men are very macho and just down right arrogant. Of course their are a few gems amongst the population, but they are rare to come by. The city itself is very stressful, excessively dirty and poor and the pollution is incredibly terrible. The Country of Italy is absolutely beautiful, but the remainder of the things that comprise a country tarnish and jade its beauty like no other. I plan to never return to Italy, unless it is for some sort of martial arts competition where I am there simply to kick some butt! 

I hope you are all still enjoying these entries, even if they were inactive for a few days! I thank you all for continuously checking in and reading along, as I know some are lengthy and time consuming. Know that I appreciate you reading along and sharing the excitement. 

- San  

Rome, Italy - Part I

April 16, 2015

After traveling 528kms we finally arrived in Rome, Italy! This for me was another childhood dream being realized, however, by the end of my stay it was more along the lines of a nightmare taking place in a beautiful landscape. It took us about 2 hours just to get to our hotel in Roman traffic, and was a miracle that we made it there alive. 

Now I don't like to judge people nor their abilities, but Romans drive like maniacs... Roads are made for 2 lanes of traffic, and why they even bother painting lines on the road is beyond my comprehension, as no one uses them. Most of the time when there are two lanes, you see 4 lanes worth of traffic. In Rome, if you don't own a vehicle, you own a scooter! you will see dozen weaving through traffic in every direction which makes it very stressful to drive. Cars then park one both sides of the road or right on the line in between both lanes if there is no more room to be found. People will parallel park and if they don't fit they simply leave the remainder of the car sticking out. Smart cars can park in which ever direction they wish, vertical or horizontal. Pedestrians (which there are a ton, never seen so many tourist in one place in my life) then run across whenever they please as cars never stop even when it is the pedestrians right away (the only way to cross a street is to force the car to stop and let you pass by). Turning signals... I don't even think they know they exist. I can't even begin to express the relief we felt when arriving to our hotel. Small nugget of advice for those who plan on traveling to Rome... DON'T EVER DRIVE IN ROME! Take a hotel outside of Rome and bus instead.       

Although driving into Rome was a tad traumatizing we were still very eager to start touring the city as we saw so many beautiful things on our way in. Our first stop on the list would be the Coliseum! 

When we arrived there was a 4 hour minimum wait to buy tickets and another 2 hour wait to be let in to the Coliseum. We got really lucky and one of the English tours asked us if we'd like to join last minute for a fraction of the cost. Total wait time for us was 15 minutes. If you plan on visiting the Coliseum or any historical building in Rome buy your tickets online, you'll get to skip the lines and it is way cheaper.   

The inside of the Coliseum was exactly as expected, maybe a tad less glamorous as so much has been destroyed (the building is currently being revitalized, you can see both the new and original materials). 

The Coliseum has been demolished but also suffered much damage due to earthquakes. When the building was constructed this was not taken into account. The gladiators would enter through the large archway in the front, and from the sides large animals such as elephants would enter. In the original flooring were trapped doors where animals such as lions would enter the Coliseum. The circular maze is where the servants would work and at each end is where the lions would be caged until battle time. High above is where the men would sit and the ladies would stand. 

The Coliseum was a place for business dealings. while the men watched the battles, their women would go seal their dealings. There is a specific location in the Coliseum called the "Fornicata" which translates to fornication (easy enough to understand what it was used for). One particular timbit of information we acquired that I found fascinating was that originally people came to the Coliseum to see the extraordinary animals not so much the fights. The Coliseum was truly a combination of what we consider today a sports stadium, a zoo and a trading centre. 

Next up was the Roman Forum, a place where the people of Rome reunited to trade goods and services, or to conduct economical and political business. Today the site is mostly ruins, but is being reconstructed. 

This large building was opened in 1925 and is approximately 70 meters high. It was constructed as a commemorative to Victor-Emmanuel II and serves as a museum today dedicated to art, science, religion and rights of early Italian culture.

The sun would soon begin to set, and the beauty of Rome would simply multiply. During the day you see a lot of cranes, road blocking, wires and all the typical construction site gibberish, but at night it is so dark that these elements hide in the shadows even though they are in plain view. We saw many of the same building on our way back to our hotel that we had visited earlier in the day, but they were 10x more elegant and awe worthy. As the sun begins to set the people diminish, however, there are still more people wandering at night than there are during the day in many cities.

This building is known as the Trajan Forum and was the last of the Imperial fora to be constructed in ancient Rome. During the day this building doesn't look like much due to all the construction surrounding it, but at night, the lights illuminate it just perfectly!

Here are the surrounding columns, which have such beautiful architecture embossed upon them and once again the lighting adds a touch of elegance. I took a course in Roman and Greek Architecture during my last semester of school and I must say, although I did not enjoy the course, I learned a lot and it was very cool to be able to identify so many of the things I learned.

The merchandise sellers never seem to sleep! The above photo was taken around 10pm at night, and they were still hard at work harassing traveller to buy their stuff! Every corner you turn to in Rome someone is trying to sell you something. One thing I can say is the next merchant seller that offers me a selfie stick is going to have a sore bum!

We walked down a quiet ally while attempting to make it back to our hotel and found beautiful lit streets with amazing restaurants all lit by candle light.  My photo taking skills were slowly diminishing as I felt very ill. Something I ate earlier in the evening for dinner did not sit well and with 1.5 hours left to walk before arriving to our hotel it was starting to be quite a challenge.

There were so many amazing monuments to take in with captivating stories and years of history attached. I have always been a huge fanatic of Roman and Greek history that I could not be happier to be exploring the city of Rome! Rome, however, will now be forever changed and always have a piece of Sandra! After walking for about 1.5 hours of feeling ill I was brought to my knees with massive pains and was of course sick all over the side of a corner building in Rome.

I knew after being ill that there was something going on with me that went far beyond feeling ill from food. We spotted this beautiful church so we made our way inside, sat had some water and took a breather. There are so many beautiful churches in Rome and they are actually used unlike most churches across Europe that we saw. Each one we entered had enough people to conduct a mass which was pretty cool to see.

This above photo is simply another beautiful street we wandered through (lost) while I desperately hoped we would just arrive to our hotel! By this point I had been sick multiple times and now was having problems breathing and experiencing massive pains. 

This ladies and gentlemen is the last picture I took Thursday night, and is the last moment of joy/city life I enjoyed that evening. We were about 10 mins from our hotel and everything went down hill and well I'm lucky to be alive! 

When we arrived at our hotel I striped down my clothing and jumped directly in a freezing shower! All along I had been having an allergic reaction, without knowing (as this never happened to me before). My ears swelled up super thick, my eye lids swelled so big they were almost shut, my lips swelled so bad that they cracked and bled. My entire body was on fire and bubbling. I looked down at my arms and legs, stomach and backside and red rashes covered me everywhere. The scary thing was they were not just rashes... they were boiling my skin and were moving. My hands swelled so bad that the ring on my right hand that is excessively loose had to be removed as it cut my finger, and my shoes could barely be removed. My air way had almost closed and my heart rate was around 88/100 (suppose to be around 60). My blood pressure crashed and out the lights began to go. Fair enough to say the experience was a tad traumatizing (especially when all the doctors and people helping you only speak Italian), I never want to see or hear an ambulance again, nor do I want to sit in a hospital bed. I was given some heavy drugs and a needle in the bum! The above photo was taken about 3 hours after the meds started to kick in and I still look pretty terrible!

This blog entry is obviously very behind, but given the circumstances I think it makes sense. Almost dying in Rome was quite an experience, one I hope to never experience again! Thank you for everyone who checked in to see how I was doing. I'm eager to hug you all again!

- San